Pride
by Razzberrie
Summary: Will Sakuragi's pride overrule everything? //hey people, i hope i've got the problem with the quotation marks solved.//
1. The Bet

A/N: Oh my¡­I can¡¯t believe I am writing a Slam Dunk fic¡­but there you are! I think Fang influenced me...anyway, I'm writing a fic on Sakuragi 'cos I think he's cute...his actions are cute and his hair is cute. Okay, please don't expect this to be a yaoi fic...I don't really like the idea of homosexual relationships. This is non-yaoi and safe for anyone to read.

Disclaimer: Do I have to put it down? Oh alright. Slam Dunk does not belong to me. Eh, to whom then? Oh, you know it.

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**CHAPTER ONE**

¡°What¡¯s that new movie theatre I see, I see? A place for Haruko-chan¡­ and me, and me!¡± Sakuragi hummed, what he thought was a song-cum-rhyme. Unfortunately, the song went out of pitch as usual.

¡°Hanamichi! Why are you in such a good mood today?¡± Yohei questioned.

¡°Ahahaha!¡± Sakuragi laughed his trademark laugh, his eyes turning to adorable little slits. ¡°A new movie theatre has been opened in town! Do me a favour: persuade Haruko-chan to catch a movie with me!¡± he pleaded.

Yohei looked as though he never knew Sakuragi in his life; he turned his head and pretended to study a dull brown sparrow perched on a tree.

¡°Hmph! Never mind. The Tensai can succeed at whatever he wants to do!¡± Sakuragi put on an arrogant and self-satisfied smile, stalking away with huge strides. Yohei chuckled to himself; he did not think that he would live to see Sakuragi make Haruko fall for him.

Sakuragi fumed silently as the feeling of wanting to prove Yohei wrong built up inside him. He would not lose again.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

¡°Hello, Hanamichi. Taken any action yet?¡± It was Yohei, calling him again. Sakuragi felt himself turning red. At school, he had tried to pluck up the courage to approach Haruko, yet her presence made all his senses elude him and he felt his legs cramp up. He had then crumpled to the floor, earning the jeers of students crossing the hallway. 

¡°Eh¡­I haven¡¯t got around to asking her yet, but I will!¡± Sakuragi fumbled for an excuse. 

¡°Hahaha¡­¡± Yohei laughed smugly. ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡±

Eep. That was the most humiliating conversation I¡¯ve had in my life. How can I let him get the better of me? I must get Haruko-chan to go on a date with me, or I can never show my face again¡­ Sakuragi thought desperately.

Yohei was smiling to himself after replacing the receiver. Hanamichi has never succeeded at wooing Haruko before. So how can he ever win this time round? 

¡°Heads, I win. Tails, he wins.¡± Sakuragi flipped the coin into the air, praying fervently for it to land on heads. It rolled into a drain. He cursed loudly and kicked the grating.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

¡°Sakuragi-kun! Gambatte!¡± Haruko was there again, at the Shohoku High School basketball court, cheering him on. Sakuragi smiled despite the sharp pain in his ankle. He had sprained his ankle a few days ago, and it still bothered him now. Distracted by her high-pitched cry of encouragement, he slipped and twisted the already injured ankle. 

¡°Ouch¡­¡± he moaned repeatly, not caring if his image of Tensai was damaged or not. 

¡°Sakuragi-kun! Daijobu?¡± Haruko was there in an instant, with a mixture of concern and horror on her face. 

This is my chance , Sakuragi thought, his eyelids lowering. He immediately groaned louder for the benefit of Haruko. She seemed flustered, and Sakuragi knew his plan was working very well indeed. Moaning again, he clutched his ankle, knowing Haruko would see it.

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A/N: Please tell me what you think of this because this is my first attempt at a Slam Dunk fic¡­ I don¡¯t think I¡¯m doing a good job of it though.


	2. Date

A/N: Oops! Sorry for keeping you waiting...I have my 'O' s to study for, you see. And my dad flares up whenever I go online, so... Anyway, here's the second chapter.

Disclaimer: Do I have to put it down? Oh alright. Slam Dunk does not belong to me. Eh, to whom then? Oh, you know it.

# mitkuroi: hmm, actually, if I leaked out the pairing, it wouldn't capture your attention anymore, would it? ;) #

# sLL: Do the inverted commas still appear as weird symbols? #

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**CHAPTER TWO**

Haruko did exactly as he had anticipated. After being laid down carefully at the side, out of the way, she sat by him, her face still creased with anxiety. He groaned aloud again, earning him a frown from Haruko¡¯s face. Throughout the practice, he lay there, basking in his triumph. "Score one for me," Sakuragi whispered to himself.

Yohei watched all this with an expression of disbelief on his face. Was this Sakuragi, the guy who got dumped countless times? He gaped at the scene, obviously shocked. Yohei started to wonder. _Will I lose my bet?_

Sakuragi stole a glance at Yohei, and smirked to himself. He was going to win! His pride was so important to him that he could not stand losing. Also, winning Yohei in a bet would be the first.

Haruko sat patiently, waiting for the practice to end. She had stopped worrying about Sakuragi now, as he appeared to be fine. He had stopped groaning and was smiling to himself as usual. Her attention started to focus on Rukawa and his stunning manoeuvres on the court. _He's just so __attractive__,_ she thought.

Sakuragi did not realise that Haruko's attention had switched from him to Rukawa. Instead, he was busy gloating on his success. He had forgotten that there was a second part to his plan, and just lay there grinning in a superior manner.

Yohei observed this and stifled a laugh. It was expected of Sakuragi. Egoistic and boastful Sakuragi. He never thought of anyone else, except maybe Haruko. The Haruko that was staring blissfully at Rukawa.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

He had failed yet again. The redheaded boy buried his face in his hands. 

"Arghhh!!!!" he let out a scream of frustration. Why was it that he always lost to Yohei? Why was life so unfair? Why couldn't he just win for once? Now all his friends would tease him yet again. 

"I can't take it anymore!"

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"Haruko-chan, will...you...go...on a date with me?" Sakuragi stammered. There. He had popped the question.

"Of course, Sakuragi-kun," Haruko said dreamily, still thinking of Rukawa's fabulous playing the day before. "I'll go anywhere you want to go."

His eyes grew wide, and he sat there, agape. Did she actually agree to go out with him? And was her last statement a hint? His ecstasy overshadowed his doubts. He would tell this to Yohei.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Yohei mused over what Sakuragi had just told him. Sakuragi had succeeded in dating Haruko? Was it for real? He had to see for himself.

Sakuragi

// It's my first date with Haruko-chan. I wonder what will Yohei think. He will definitely not believe me, and come to see it for himself. I know him only too well. 

Will she be wearing a kimono? *pictures her looking very attractive in a flashy kimono* 

I chose an expensive restaurant for our date. I wonder if she'll like it. There's a extremely wide variety of food. *mouth waters* //

Haruko entered the restaurant with her two giggling friends. He felt annoyed. Why were those two always following her? His anger bubbled up inside him, and his face turned to a shade of purplish-red. He clenched his fists vengefully as the three girls approached. It was supposed to be just between Haruko and him! 

The trio turned a corner and walked towards the table. Sakuragi thought of punching them. Then...

The girls walked right on, still giggling and punching each other playfully. They had completely missed him! Sakuragi felt himself turn red. What was happening? He started to stand up, then thought better of it and sat down again. He would watch them and see their reaction.

Haruko directed her friends to another table, and they settled into their seats. Sakuragi squinted, trying to avoid the glaring ceiling lights as he spied on them. His eyes almost popped out when he realised that there was a fourth person. Outraged, he strode to the foursome, wanting to give them a piece of his mind.

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A/N: Yes, I know that this fic is a little OOC...but I have tried to make their personalities as close to the original characters as possible. And sorry Sakuragi! You unluckily happen to be one of my favourite characters.


	3. Renewed Will

A/N: Oooooh~ I just finished my ¡®O¡¯s todae¡­*whoops in glee* btw, I just read a Phantom of the Opera fic¡­and I think it¡¯s quite sweet! Haha¡­so, as you have guessed, I am in a pretty good mood right now. Therefore, do not fear for Sakuragi¡­he won¡¯t be mutilated all that much~ Anyway, Fang commented that no girl in her right mind would say that a guy is beautiful, so I have changed that. (Chap 2) Gomen~

Disclaimer: Do I have to put it down? Oh alright. Slam Dunk does not belong to me. Eh, to whom then? Oh, you know it.

# sLL: Thanks very much for reviewing! It¡¯s so sad¡­I only have 6 reviews so far¡­oh well; it¡¯s the writing that¡¯s more important. #

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**CHAPTER T****HREE******

Sakuragi stopped dead in his tracks. He felt feverish. Sweat trickled from his temple, down his cheek. It was¡­Yohei.

_What¡¯s he doing there?_ Sakuragi wondered jealously. _Why is he with MY Haruko-chan?? _

Yohei and the girls had started chatting, oblivious to Sakuragi¡¯s presence. They could be seen laughing and giggling, slapping each other in mirth. Sakuragi suddenly felt hollow. Yohei had used underhanded means to stop him from winning the bet! That was the only possible explanation Sakuragi could think of. He felt betrayed and didn¡¯t want to confront them any more. He turned on his heels and stalked away.

The bubbling laughter continued. The tears flowed ceaselessly from their eyes as they attempted to halt their laughter. And somewhere, a little farther down the street, a little boy wept, as if heartbroken.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

¡°¡­I don¡¯t want to continue the bet any longer,¡± a despondent Sakuragi mumbled over the phone.

¡°What?¡± Yohei strained to hear the rest of Sakuragi¡¯s sentence. ¡°You don¡¯t want to what?¡± 

¡°Continue the bet!!¡± Sakuragi yelled, losing his patience. 

¡°Oh¡­you want to continue the bet?¡± Yohei had forgotten the rest of the sentence. ¡°Okay. That was the initial plan anyway. See you tomorrow!¡± 

¡°Hello?? Hello?!!? What the hell!?!¡± Sakuragi banged his foot on the ground in frustration. Yohei had replaced the receiver. 

_Never mind_, Sakuragi thought. He seemed to have come out of his reverie. _I will show him this time._

* * * * * * * * * * * *

The tall and lanky redheaded boy soon spotted his target. 

¡°Aha!¡± Sakuragi whispered to himself. ¡°It¡¯s Showtime!¡±

The lean and slender girl, with brown hair falling over her shoulders, proceeded to walk to the canteen. Sakuragi followed stealthily.

¡°Haruko-chan!¡± A dark-haired boy waved at her. 

¡°Yohei-kun!¡± she waved back enthusiastically, and the two fell in step. Yohei draped his arm around her casually and pulled her closer to him.

¡°Eh? Yohei-kun?¡± she questioned with a bewildered look on her face.

¡°Shhh!¡± he silenced her. ¡°I think Hanamichi is watching us from a distance. Let¡¯s proceed with the backup plan. You don¡¯t want him to go blaming Rukawa, do you?¡±

Haruko fidgeted nervously. She wouldn¡¯t want Sakuragi to find out that she had completely forgotten about their date because of Rukawa. Because of Rukawa, she had arranged to meet up with Yohei to discuss some ¡®melt-the-iceman-tactics¡¯. And if Sakuragi learnt about it, he would get on Rukawa¡¯s case.

¡°Okay, go ahead.¡± She shut her eyes in preparation for what was to come. The problem was, Sakuragi wasn¡¯t prepared for it at all.

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A/N: Please review to tell me what you think. If you think it sucks and not worth reviewing, I do apologise. Sigh~, my writer¡¯s pride is pressing me not to ask for reviews, but I have waited far too long. I need a good and critical opinion of my writing. P.S. Sorry if my chapters are too short, I think my brain dies every time I reach a certain word limit¡­


	4. Haruko's Other Side

A/N: And yes, as you readers have expected, Yohei pretends to be attracted to her! Oh wow, I sound like I¡¯m announcing an important thing~~ haha¡­ However, sorry, but the mushy part doesn¡¯t come now. No, he does not kiss her. He merely¡­ ¡­just read on.

Disclaimer: Do I have to put it down? Oh alright. Slam Dunk does not belong to me. Eh, to whom then? Oh, you know it.

# sLL: Oh no! Sorry¡­I think the quotation marks appear weird again because I saved them in a different format¡­ That¡¯s because I need the bold and italic effects on the words. If you can tell me how to save the document without the weird symbols, but with the bold and italics, I would really appreciate it. Arigato! #

# Perc Mad Hatter: It¡¯s weird? And no, I am not going to disclose the plot to you¡­hehe #

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**CHAPTER FOUR**

Yohei pulled her into his embrace. And right on cue, Haruko pushed him away forcefully and slapped him resoundingly across his cheek. Yohei flushed, and began to shout some indiscernible words at her, grabbing her arm in a swift motion. Hot tears blinded her, and she escaped from him in a flurry, tripping over her feet as she went.

Sakuragi eyes almost popped out of their sockets. His eyes flamed with anger as he charged forward and tried to knock the young man down. Yohei, however, did a neat twist and landed, free of his friend¡¯s bulky body. Sakuragi ended up crashing down onto the floor, wincing as sharp jolts of pain coursed through him. Yohei shut his eyes tightly as the impact of the fall took its toll on his friend. He didn¡¯t mean for it to turn out this way.

As Yohei bent over his friend in concern, the ¡°ever-hyper¡± man stood up almost instantly, without a complaint. Yohei shuddered to think of what would follow next.

¡°How could you?!?!¡± Sakuragi burst out, all his energy focused on projecting that sentence alone. He wanted as many people to hear it. Yohei wanted to just take off immediately, but he knew that he had to play his part. 

¡°I like Haruko-chan!¡± he blatantly lied. ¡°Why can¡¯t I show my affection for her?¡±

Sakuragi¡¯s eyes bulged even more. [If that is even remotely possible]

¡°Nani?!?!!¡± All his pent-up emotions flowed forth, and a stream of unbelievably foul curses emitted from his mouth. [Heaven forbid!]

Yohei tried to cover his ears to shut out the awful sound. _You never knew that Hanamichi had such a fierce temperament, did you? Haruko-chan. _

After the cascade of vulgarities had subsided, Yohei looked straight at Sakuragi and arranged his face in what he hoped was a sorry expression. [Sound familiar, HP fans? BTW, HP is Harry Potter, not Hewlett Packard] 

¡°Gomen ne, Hanamichi. But you are in the same boat as me. You know what it¡¯s like to like a girl and not be able to express your fondness for her.¡± _Good Lord, I never knew that it was so difficult to tell a lie! _Yohei was struggling with his conscience. But to help a friend in need, this was necessary.

Sakuragi collapsed onto the ground, exhausted by all the recent events. His mind screamed for him to get up and teach Yohei a lesson. Instead, Sakuragi opted for the better and more rational choice. He didn¡¯t have the energy to shout anymore.

¡°Okay. Go ahead and explain.¡± He sighed wearily.

Yohei withheld the truth, and spun a story about his so-called crush on Haruko. When Yohei was finished, despite his tiredness, Sakuragi swore determinedly to himself that he would win Haruko¡¯s heart before Yohei had a chance to snatch it away. He drew in a ragged breath and crossed his fingers, unnoticed by his friend.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

¡°Wasn¡¯t my acting good?¡± Haruko squealed excitedly over the phone.

¡°Uhm¡­yeah.¡± Yohei replied, still feeling the nagging guilt at the back of his mind.

¡°Yours was perfect too!¡± she continued, clueless about his feelings. [Couldn¡¯t she guess from his tone?]

¡°Uhm, okay.¡± Yohei muttered, not really paying any attention to her words. ¡°Look,¡± he started. He wanted to get it off his chest. ¡°Hanamichi was really furious and hurt. Didn¡¯t you even notice?¡± His tone was slightly acidic.

¡°Oh no! Gomenasai!!¡± Haruko apologised profusely over the phone. ¡°I didn¡¯t realise!¡±

_As usual_, Yohei thought dryly. ¡°So, uhm, I think we should stop this act and tell him the truth.¡±

¡°But¡­but¡­¡± Haruko protested. ¡°Rukawa-kun¡­¡± She sounded like a love-sick puppy.

_Oh my._ Yohei sighed inwardly. _Here we go again._

¡°Okay, okay, you can have it your way.¡± He knew that he would only waste his time trying to argue with her.

He could almost picture her grinning to herself.

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A/N: Sorrie if it¡¯s too short again¡­my parents were nagging at me to study¡­again. Well, I know that nothing much happened in this chapter, and I¡¯m very sorry, but I need more time alone if I¡¯m to write a better chapter. I hope you readers out there who are reading my fic can give me some feedback¡­sigh~


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